Magnemite On A Mountain
by Authenti
Summary: The story of how Amber found a frozen Magnemite on Mount Coronet, and of the resulting search for what it has lost.
1. Climbing

Amber tossed her blonde hair once before stuffing it down the back of her thick, heavy coat again. She pulled her hood up, pulled at the drawstrings slightly to tighten it around her face, and sneezed at the faux fur lining the edges.

The Raticate beside her chattered its teeth quietly. She wasn't cold. Rats just did that sometimes. She looked up at her mistress and was greeted with a determined smile.

"Ready, Rue?"

"Tiicaaate!"

They began the climb.

Mount Coronet was harsh; they had battled their way up, returned to Snowpoint, climbed again, and repeated until Amber felt they were ready to reach the top. This was the time they would do it properly.

They started from the Snowpoint side of the mountain, laden with only the bare essentials. Rue carried a small bag fixed to a strong, comfortable red harness. In it were some healing items and some food.

After about quarter of an hour, the climb began to steepen. Snow began to fall less often – hail took its place, and then it got too cold to do either. Amber breathed into her mittens whenever she rested, and Rue huddled close to her with fur puffed up.

The trainer had even bought gloves for her Pokémon's four paws. Apparently she came prepared for anything. Rue didn't like the feel or look of them, but at least they kept her warm…

Hours later, they were traversing a near-vertical sheet of icy rock when Amber's foot hit something. She cried out in dismay as she lost her grip, rocks crumbling beneath her as she felt herself wrenched backwards by gravity-

A sickening lurch in her stomach, and she looked up to see that Rue had sunk her teeth into her backpack, all four paws planted firmly on the rock face.

She didn't hesitate to struggle back upright, clinging to the rocks, and let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks."

Rue gave a gruff squeak and they resumed their climb quickly – but Amber stopped again.

"Raatiih?"

"Rue, come see this." She was lightly prodding something that was embedded in a sheet of ice, looking confused. "This is what I tripped on."

The Raticate climbed down parallel to her, and stared at it blankly. The object was metallic and spherical. She helped her trainer to dig around it, pulling at the rocks and ice to clear a space.

Eventually, the object came loose. Amber almost dropped it, but after fumbling with it for a second she tightened her grip and then put it into her rucksack.

"I think there's a ledge somewhere just above us. Let's rest there for a while." The Raticate nodded. They made it to an outcrop of rock that was covered in black ice, and struggled up over its edge to huddle against the cliff face.

Amber took her bag off her back and cradled it with her knees whilst she took out the strange object from earlier. Now that she could look at it properly, she noticed there was a white circle on one side, and two metal screws fixed in just below it…

"Oh my goodness! I think this is a Magnemite!"

The Raticate looked surprised and sniffed at it, intrigued. "Rati?"

"I wonder where its magnets went," Amber stated thoughtfully. "Maybe it was defeated and lost its magnetism." She hesitated. "But the thing is, Magnemite don't naturally appear on Mount Coronet. Do they?"

Her Raticate clumsily settled down on her lap, over the top of her bag. She seemed determined to stay there for a while, too, but her trainer didn't mind. They were sharing their heat, which was important.

"Maybe it has a trainer. Ah, we should probably try and wake it up, hmm? That is…" She swallowed uneasily. "If it's still okay."

Amber pulled out a Pokéball from her bag, reaching under Rue (much to the Raticate's dismay). She pressed the button on it and with a flurry of holographic rose petals and sparkles from the applied stickers a Raichu appeared. The lack of a point on the end of its tail made it clear that it was a female.

"Raaaiiih?"

"Careful, there's a cliff right next to you." She giggled as the Raichu looked shocked and leapt towards her, shivering against the cold. "Don't worry, you're not staying out long. Could you maybe transfer some electricity into this Magnemite for me?"

The Raichu stepped carefully over the ice and sniffed at the Magnemite, confused. With a noncommittal shrug, the Pokémon brought its lightning bolt tail around and touched it to the Magnemite's metal body. For a few moments, it sparked rapidly, then calmed down to a barely-noticeable glow.

The human and all three Pokémon remained fairly still for about two minutes.

"I don't think it's working," Amber commented, looking worried, but then all of a sudden an eye blinked open…

"M-mag!"

"Hey, hey, don't panic – shh, it's okay," she cooed. The Pokémon calmed down and stared at her in confusion. "We found you lodged in some ice. You're on Mount Coronet."

The Raichu's tail let out an accidental spark, and its owner moved it away in case it happened again.

"My friend was just recharging you," the human explained, smiling reassuringly. The Magnemite blinked at her. "We're not sure where your magnets are. I think they might have fallen down to the bottom of the cliff somewhere. I'm going to go back and find them in a little while, once we've got you to a Pokémon Centre. Thanks," she added, returning the Raichu to her Pokéball.

"_Mag?_"

"Don't worry. You're in good hands." She picked out another Pokéball, and Rue gave up trying to stay on top of the bag, moving to the side to groom herself instead. The trainer pressed the button and a Kadabra appeared. She hadn't put any stickers on this one; Kazza had simply looked disdainful and unhappy whenever it appeared from a Pokéball that had some on it, so she just stopped using them.

_Teleport?_

"Yes, Kazza. To the nearest Pokémon Centre. We found a Magnemite, and it's in bad shape."

_Looks it, _the Pokémon remarked via telepathy. He took a more sturdy stance on the frozen ground and, after Amber had returned Rue to her Pokéball, they all blipped out of existence.


	2. Trainerless

Not for the first time, Amber was glad she'd taken her Kanto Pokémon with her when she visited new regions. Jiero, her Charizard, was providing an excellent source of heat in the harsh weather.

"I hope that Magnemite will be okay," she mused. Jiero puffed out another fireball to stoke up the dwindling fire on the messy pile of sticks between them. He didn't seem too fussed about anyone else but himself and Amber, though if it pleased her he was willing to do things that weren't selfish. In this case, he was doing what he could to aid her in the search for the Magnemite's missing parts.

"Chah."

"Well, there's nothing left to burn. Come on, enough resting, we've got work to do." She stood up and pulled her mittens back on again, and Jiero leapt to his feet. "Pity I'm not allowed to use you in battle here in Sinnoh. It would make things so much easier." She waded through the snow and squeaked in fright as a Sneasel leapt out from under her feet, shaking off ice and snow and snarling savagely. "Bloody new-start rule," she hissed under her breath, pulling out a Pokéball.

Barely had the red glow ceased when Stat, her Luxray, leapt forwards with a powerful Thunder Fang attack. The Sneasel snapped at her ankles, but the Luxray was fast, touching her tail to the enemy Pokémon and using Spark to finish it off.

"Wow, Stat, you're improving," her trainer remarked, smiling. The Luxray trotted back over proudly and rubbed up against Amber's side, purring. The static charge zapped them both and they leapt apart, Amber laughing. This happened a lot, and they always seemed to forget. "Want to help us look for some magnets?"

"…Luuh?"

"Haha, yes, it sounds silly when you say it. We found a Magnemite without its magnets and we think they're round here somewhere."

Stat seemed to understand, and nodded. She buried her nose in the snow and dug around, trying to find the scent of anything metallic.

The lion-like Pokémon's head emerged a few minutes later, along with an unused Pokéball.

"Lux! Luh-zyoo!"

"Well…" Amber took the offered item and smiled, slipping it into her bag. "…Not what we're looking for, but it's a start." She patted her Pokémon on the head kindly and they resumed their search.

---

Nurse Joy declined the money she offered with a surprised expression. "No, no! We don't require your money. Seeing a Pokémon healthy again is a reward in itself."

"It's not for that. It's for the electricity bill. Please, just take it." Amber thrust the money onto the counter and Nurse Joy shook her head slowly… then brightened up considerably.

"Really, it's fine – but I tell you what… We could offer a reward," she grinned. "Yes… And then more people would help the search."

Amber nodded enthusiastically. "What a good idea! I'm bad at organising things though, so could you do it for us?" The attendant smiled, and began tapping keys at a computer. The blonde girl sighed; "It's just a pity we couldn't find them on our own."

"_Mag…_"

Amber blinked in shock, then turned and rushed over to the case in which the Magnemite was being rejuvenated. "Cool it, it's okay, we're looking."

The Pokémon gave her an unreadable look. "Mag!"

A Pokéball activated itself inside her bag, and her Kadabra appeared beside them both.

_It wishes to speak to you._

"Agh, I told you not to do that. What if you came out of your Pokéball and we were on a cliff or something, and you fell off?"

Kazza smiled, eyes twinkling. _You and I both know that I can teleport to safety. Now, to the matter at hand._

Amber sighed and moved off a little way to seat herself on a comfy chair by the wall. She watched the two Pokémon conversing for a while, and as the sky outside darkened she felt herself drifting off…

_We're done._

"Hmm…? Oh, Kazza, hi." She yawned and sat up, stretching her arms stiffly. The Kadabra offered a claw to help her get up, which she sleepily accepted.

_The Magnemite is grateful for our help. _He moved over to the window, and she followed. _It used to have a trainer. His name was Michael Gorse._

"I was right," she nodded thoughtfully. "I figured it must have had a trainer before it got stuck on the mountain. We'll look for him tomorrow morning."

_There's a problem, _Kazza sighed. _The Magnemite remembers a Pokéball with a twist lock…_

"Oh, _no._" Her Pokémon nodded unhappily. "That type was discontinued more than eighty years ago!" She glanced over to the Magnemite. It was impossible to tell whether or not it was asleep. Did Magnemite sleep at all? She lowered her voice anyway. "So that means his old trainer could be…"

_By now, it seems likely. I do not wish to break the news to the Magnemite. Search first, then you do it._

"Ugh. Thanks for that. I'll just be the bearer of bad news, then. For now, goodnight." She returned the Kadabra to his Pokéball and slumped back down in the nearest chair.

How utterly unfair… that poor Pokémon… she thought.

Amber drifted off into an unusually light and dreamless sleep, feeling uneasy and restless.


	3. Following

Dawn broke. Pidgey flew past the window, chattering and squawking. Amber sat bolt upright, clutching at bedsheets that weren't there. She calmed down and yawned widely, stretching stiffly and standing up from the set of waiting seats she'd been lying on.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I wake you up?" Nurse Joy whispered from across the room where she was watering some plants on a windowsill. Amber shook her head and gave the nurse a reassuring smile, then walked silently over to the glass case with the Magnemite in it. It seemed to be sleeping. It looked like it had when she'd first found it, anyway.

Amber sighed and moved over to the window beside Nurse Joy, opening it to breathe the fresh morning air.

"I'm sorry I fell asleep on the seats. I meant to move downstairs to one of the rooms, but…"

"That's okay. A lot of trainers stay with their Pokémon while they're healing. Just because that Magnemite isn't yours doesn't mean you wouldn't do the same for it."

Amber nodded. "How's it doing, by the way?"

The pink-haired woman smiled brightly and put the watering can down on the wide windowsill. "Oh, it'll be just fine. It's just being recharged. In fact… It should be back in top form right about now." She paused, and gave a sheepish look to the ceiling. "That is… apart from the fact it's missing its magnets. We haven't had any responses on the Centre's website yet. I'll ask a volunteer to hand out leaflets to everyone in Snowpoint today."

"I appreciate it. I'm going out to look."

"But it's so early!"

"I know… but the snow is all pink at this time in the morning, and I don't want to waste a clear day like this. I'll be better off starting the search now." She gave a loud snap of the fingers. There was a skittering of paws at the escalators (which were turned off) and Stat loped into the room with tail held high.

"Lux?"

"Shh, there are Pokémon sleeping in here. Come on, we're going to look for those magnets again." The Luxray yawned widely and made a disgusted expression. "I know, I know, it's early… but the faster we find them, the sooner we can take a good, long rest."

Stat sighed and flicked her tailtip at her trainer's shin, then turned and headed back downstairs with Amber following quietly.

---

It was a good few hours later that Amber finally returned to Snowpoint Pokémon Centre, her stomach empty and her mood dampened.

"My, are you alright?" Nurse Joy enquired hurriedly. "You're soaking wet!"

Amber sneezed. "Bleh… I'm fine… I just… Fell in a snowdrift. Twice."

"Lux Luxray."

"Three times." She sighed and headed downstairs, Stat headbutting her gently to hurry her up. "Alright, alright, I'm resting now! Calm down."

Nurse Joy sighed and took someone's Pikachu upstairs to heal. At least she had some good news, though. She hoped.

Five minutes later, the nurse stepped downstairs, past the counters, and into a short hallway with doors leading off. She knocked on the second one along, and the blonde-haired girl answered looking sleepy. She already had her pyjamas on, apparently, and a thick pink dressing gown.

"Yuh…?" She rubbed one eye tiredly.

"I'm very sorry to interrupt, but I have some news on the Magnemite case."

"Uhuh?"

She smiled sweetly. "Someone recently called in with a tip-off that they'd seen an Abomasnow about a year ago with a magnet in its paw. It defeated them, so they didn't get a chance to investigate… but that's better than nothing, right?"

The door clicked shut quietly. Almost immediately, it opened again, and Amber was standing there bright-eyed and bushy-tailed wearing her usual snowy-weather clothes. She stepped past Nurse Joy with a determined look on her face, and clipped some Pokéballs onto her belt as she headed up the escalators.

"Well… at least she's strong-willed," Nurse Joy remarked. "But what a strange child." A Chansey sitting on a plush chair nearby nodded wryly in response.

---

"Snoh," the odd little fir tree Pokémon chattered. It backed away a little, but Amber got to her knees to try and look less imposing.

"It's okay, little guy, I'm not going to try and catch you or anything. I just want to know somethi-"

It whacked her in the face with a snowball.

"GRAAGH! YOU LITTLE-" She blinked rapidly and wiped the freezing snow off her face. "No. I won't get angry. Please. Just tell me if you've seen anyone with a magnet around here."

The Pokémon seemed to relax a little. Its provoking action hadn't worked, so it seemed content with the fact that she wasn't going to hurt it.

"Sno-snover?"

"A magnet. It looks like…" She traced a horseshoe shape in the snow and stood back. "A bit like that." The Snover approached tentatively and peered at the mark.

"Sno…" There was a long silence, and then it brightened up and looked happy about something. "Snover! Snover sno!" It ran off along the snow-covered terrain, and waved to Amber to show it wanted her to follow. She stood up and leapt over a snowdrift to try and keep up.

They took a winding path through a patch of fir trees, scaled a small cliff, and finally edged along a thin path over the side of Mount Coronet. The Snover slowed to a halt and pointed ahead.

"Sno," it said, lowering its voice. Everything was eerily quiet. She looked to where it was pointing, and noticed a huge cave cut out of the rock. The snow had been trodden on so many times, it had turned to solid ice, and it was hard to walk on.

"In there?"

"Snover."

"Thank you. I'm very sorry about making you come all this way." She rummaged in her bag. The Pokémon looked apprehensive, but her hand returned with a sweet-flavoured poffin which she then offered to the Snover, smiling.

"Snover, sno," it replied, taking the poffin and munching it happily. Amber turned away and finally approached the cave warily. It spooked her a little. Caves in mountains that are too dark to see in… They're not usually a good sign.

She steeled herself, however, and stepped into the darkness.


	4. Failed Attempt

Her eyes began to hurt a little. She couldn't tell where she was going, and for a while she almost lost her footing repeatedly. But Amber made it to what felt like a cavern wall, and then turned left and saw light ahead. It looked like daylight, but she couldn't be sure. Plus, there was nothing but more rock this way for at least a mile, wasn't there?

Amber emerged in a small cavern, lit by a hole in the roof, through which streamed frozen mist. The roof was hung with icicles, and there was a faint snuffling sound from somewhere to her right.

She turned to see what it was, and then turned pale.

"Aaabooomaaahhh…"

The purplish eyes glinted at her maliciously. She took a step back and lowered her head a little.

"Sorry," she mouthed, and backed away slowly towards the exit. Something shiny caught her eye.

The Abomasnow had clearly made its den in this cave, and there was some snow heaped up in the corner with a compressed part in the middle where she suspected it generally slept. There was also a shelf of rock jutting out of the wall just above the 'nest', and there was an entire collection of shiny objects that the Pokémon must have picked up from the mountainside over the years.

It kept on staring at her, and advanced two steps.

"Aboma! Aaa…."

"Sorry if I'm intruding. I was just looking for something. A Snover led me here."

"Abomasnow!" It snarled angrily at her and attempted to swipe at her face. Amber squeaked and leapt back, stumbling over a rock as the hulking Pokémon moved towards her. She fell backwards and attempted to skitter across the floor, but the Abomasnow dodged behind her and put itself between her and the exit.

"Look, I'm sorry! What kind of challenge is this, anyway? You _know _you could so easily just… It's not even fair!" She reached for a Pokéball…

She heard a roar, felt crashing of snow and ice from the hole in the roof, and fell unconscious.

---

Kazza paced back and forth uneasily in the waiting room. A little girl was sitting in one of the chairs, cuddled up to a Wigglytuff, staring at the ground blankly. The hospital was otherwise deserted.

Kazza glanced up at the girl. Their stares met briefly, and then she looked away again, eyes watering. The Wigglytuff gave him a saddened look, and patted the seat beside them.

The Kadabra hesitated for a while, and then padded quietly over to sit down, thick tail coiled over his lap. For the sake of having something to do, he turned his spoon over and over in his claws, the polished shine catching the light.

"My daddy's in there," the girl sniffed.

"Kah?"

"He's very brave. Mommy said so too."

Kazza nodded encouragingly. The girl watched the spoon for a while.

"Where did you get it?" He was unable to answer, so she guessed. "Did your mommy and daddy give it to you?" He shook his head. "Oh. Was it your trainer?" This time he nodded.

The Wigglytuff smiled at him, running a hand through the girl's hair.

_Are you looking after her?_

The Wigglytuff blinked at him, and then bowed its head slightly. _Her father was in a climbing accident. I guess you're waiting for some results too, huh?_

Kazza sighed and leant back. The girl kept watching the spoon. _An Abomasnow used Avalanche on her before she could send anyone out to help. It's a good thing I chose that moment to escape my Pokéball._

"Mister, what kind of Pokémon are you? I saw one like you a long time ago, but he had a different spoon than that."

Now here was a question he could actually respond to. "Kadabra," he stated clearly, with a wry smile. She smiled back, and he paused for a while before passing the spoon to her. She accepted with surprise and examined it closely, holding it as though she felt like she might break it just by touching it.

"It's really pretty."

"Kah." She passed it back and they fell silent, three pairs of eyes on the emergency room doors.

The light turned green. Amber limped out of the double-doors, aided by a doctor.

"Kazza!" she called, and he leapt to attention looking guilty. She smiled and bade the doctor leave her be. He stood back, but walked close to her in case she fell.

The Kadabra's eyes widened in surprise as she leapt at him, and caught her delicately, worried she might hurt herself.

"Thanks, Kazza. Really. If you hadn't been there…"

_We still didn't get those magnets. I'm sorry._

"Oh, don't be like that. It wasn't your fault."

The doctor brushed some lint from his white coat and placed a hand on her shoulder lightly. Kazza supported her as she turned around.

"You're free to go, but be very careful. Go straight to the Pokémon Centre and get a room, and rest up. Luckily you didn't break anything, but you have nasty bruises. No need to worry."

"Thank you, doctor. I'll be careful."

Kazza turned to leave, but stopped at the door and glanced back at the little girl with the Wigglytuff.

Wait. I want to do something nice for her. She's a brave child, waiting for her father like that.

"Oh, Kazza. You're so sentimental." He gave her a knowing look, and she broke out into a grin. "Aw, I can't say no to you. You generally know better than I do, anyway!" She paused for a moment outside the hospital. "Er, any ideas, then?" Kazza looked thoughtful.

---

Back in the waiting room, the Wigglytuff's ears perked up slightly. A voice in its head. He suddenly realised it was the Kadabra who had entered earlier and left with his trainer.

_What's her favourite type of Pokémon?_

The Wigglytuff glanced at the closed exit doors.

What? She likes Chansey, but they're kind of rare.

_Good,_ Kazza chuckled. _I believe we can compromise for that. Where does she live?_

Wigglytuff grinned at his charge, and she looked back at him in confusion.

"Tuff," he said soothingly, and she laid her head back on the cushion sleepily.

---

Amber sat on the bench outside, the currently-disabled Magnemite resting in her lap and a shy-looking Heracross clinging to her shins. She waved at Stat, who nodded, eyes sparking with determination. The Luxray's ears flicked vaguely, and the Pokémon waited for her eyes to adjust to the glare of the snow. The day was much too bright today. She was glad her 'mission' would be in a cave.

"Good luck, Stat."

"Luuh," Stat grinned, and finally turned tail and ran towards the mountain path to find a Snover that could take her to the cave.

"Don't get in too deep!" Amber called after her, biting her lip. "If you run into trouble, come straight back!"

"Mag?"

She glanced down at the Magnemite. It couldn't move anywhere without anything to disrupt the Earth's magnetic pull, but it was thinking clearly enough at least.

"What?"

"Mag, Magnemite."

"Eh…"

It glanced at the Heracross, who shuddered and attempted to move away, but then winked encouragingly and began speaking to it.

"Hera… Heracro…"

"Mag!"

Amber looked on in irritation at not being able to understand anything. She wished Kazza was here, but he was off delivering the baby Happiny to the little girl's house. The Heracross, however, began tugging at her jeans.

"What _is _it, Weaver?"

"Heracross," he stated quietly, pointing at her, and then at the bandage on her leg.

"Magnemite," the other Pokémon piped up.

"Oh, right. You want to know what happened, right?" _It's nice that Weaver's miming for the Magnemite. He's so bad at socialising… _"Well, basically, I was out looking for those magnets, and it turns out they're currently in the possession of a large, old, and cranky Abomasnow. I learned my lesson. Avalanche _hurts._"

"Mag- Magnemite!" it stuttered, looking shocked.

She chuckled and pushed some of her currently ice-crystallised hair away from her face with a gloved hand. "It's okay, really. Stat's going on the hunt for me. She'll handle it, no problem. I just wasn't ready – but Stat knows what she's in for, and she's prepared."

There was a hiss of sliding doors, and Nurse Joy peered out of the Pokémon Centre at the trio on the bench.

"Are you three alright out here?"

"Uh-huh."

"Hera.

"Mag."

The Nurse giggled at the chorus of monotone replies. "Well, we're not very talkative today, are we? Anyway, I'm just checking up on you to make sure you're okay. That was a nasty attack, Amber. The doctor told me to keep an eye on you."

"I'm fine, honestly." She stood up, wincing very slightly, and then tried a few steps forwards. "See? And Weaver will catch me if I fall. _Won't you, Weaver._"

The Heracross looked mortified, and backed off. She changed her expression from evil empress to sweet foster-mother, and grabbed him by the horn to pull him close for a hug.

"Alright, I'm not about to fall on you. Come on, it's getting uncomfortably cold out here." Nurse Joy helped her back to her room on the basement floor, eyeing the Magnemite with a look of concern.

"I think maybe I should take the Magnemite back upstairs. It's been stuck in the permafrost for a long time. It might still need a recharge." She reached out to it, then there was a brief 'snap' sound and she withdrew her hand quickly with a squeal of pain.

"Ouch!"

"Oh my god, what happened?" Amber had jumped quite obviously at the nurse's shriek.

"Oh, dear, I'm sorry. I think it must have given me a static shock accidentally." She shook out her hand. "Well, anyway, I'm sure it'll be fine with you for a while. It seems to trust you. Bring it back upstairs later, okay?"

Amber's face brightened. "You mean we can keep chatting?"

"Mag!"

"Heh, looks like you're all happy about that. Go on, then, I won't keep you." The nurse bustled back along the corridor, batting away a Chansey that wanted to take a look at her shocked hand.


	5. Ending The Search

It was late at night, and Amber was woken by a faint scratching sound from the door. She stood up and rushed to the door, already anxious. Fumbling with the key, she eventually managed to get it into the lock, twisting it roughly and tugging the door open.

"…Luh," came a weak voice, and the Luxray collapsed at her feet with a satisfied grin. Held between her teeth was a pair of magnets.

"Oh, _Stat_! You did it! I was so worried about you!" She stooped to pick up the Pokémon, grunting under the weight, and carried her to the bed. "You're covered in snow, though." She moved away only to close the door and fetch a Potion from her bag, but the Luxray batted her hands away.

"Ray-ray," she complained, and curled up tightly on the pillow, spitting the magnets onto the floor. Apparently all she wanted to do was sleep, and Amber didn't blame her.

"Go on then, take up all the space. I'm taking these to Magnemite. I have a feeling that his species doesn't need to sleep."

There was no answer, so she smiled and left the room. Two minutes later, she was upstairs, trying to find her way to the Magnemite without any light to see by. Switching on the lights could wake up the other Pokémon in the ward, and she didn't want that. Finally she arrived at the glass case, magnets in either hand. She tapped on the glass with a knuckle gently, and the Magnemite made a quiet buzzing sound of acknowledgement that she was there.

"Stat found them," she whispered. "I think it was a stealth job, due to the fact that she actually made it back and all."

"M-Mag!"

"Shh, you'll wake everyone. Where's the button, now…?" She jabbed lightly at the side of the case until her finger hit a small, rounded panel that compressed under her touch. The case made a hissing noise and the glass flipped over in a mechanised fashion. She picked out the Magnemite and carried it downstairs until finally they were out in the snow. "Okay, here. I have no idea what I'm meant to do." She chuckled lightheartedly and held the magnets close to the Pokémon. For a few seconds there was no reaction, and then the objects quivered slightly before lifting and then snapping tight to the Magnemite's sides.

With some effort, it lifted itself from her arms, a static shock surprising them both. Testing itself, it drifted a few metres away before pausing, magnets drooping slightly.

"Everything alright?" Amber called softly, worried for the Pokémon's health. There was no need. It whirled around with a shockwave of electricity and sparks, waving gleefully at her. She grinned and bounced over to catch it, being careful about her bandaged leg, but it dodged her and then circled quickly.

They played like that for about half an hour before Amber eventually called a stop to it. "I'm tired," she explained, "and I think I'm catching a cold. I'll play some more tomorrow, okay?"

"Mag?"

"I'm sorry. I really am exhausted, though. You'll have more fun when it gets light, you'll see." She shepherded the Pokémon back inside, much to its dismay, and was about to head downstairs when she felt a light electric shock to her shoulder.

"Magnemite…"

"What? You scared of the dark, or something?" It gave her an unimpressed look. "Then what is it?"

The Pokémon responded by clinging to her arm and refusing to be moved.

"Oh. I suppose this means you don't want to go back upstairs."

"Maaag." She assumed this meant 'finally, you get it'.

"…Oh, fine. You've been healing long enough. You must be okay by now. But one sign of ill health and you're back upstairs, okay?" The Magnemite huddled closer to her after nodding briefly, and she smiled.

They returned to her room and she switched on the computer that was stationed in the corner, relaxing against the back of the office chair as she heard the low hum of machinery start up. Magnemite floated anxiously nearby, already aware of what she was doing.

"Now, I'm not too sleepy yet, so I'll have another quick look for your trainer." Her look saddened a little, but she said nothing as she began tapping keys to navigate to the database. There was a long pause, her hand hovering above the mouse. "Magnemite," she said suddenly, "If… If we can't… find him, you're welcome to stay with us… You know that, right?"

The Pokémon's magnets rotated a few times as it considered this. In the end, it didn't answer. It merely hovered, stationary, nearby.

"Sorry. But the offer still stands. Just in case." She finally lowered her hand onto the mouse, and began the search again.

The sound of muffled yawning came from the bed. Stat dropped to the floor and limped over to her owner, licking her free hand and resting her head on the girl's lap, fixing her with a doleful gaze.

"Hello, Stat. You feeling better?" Nod. "Good. You should stay in your Pokéball for the rest of the night. I'll ask Nurse Joy to heal you in the morning." Another yawn. Amber plucked Stat's Pokéball from the desk, pressing the button gently until it beamed a red glow to Stat and the Luxray vanished inside it. She set this on the desk once more, and sneezed.

"Mag?"

"Mm… Maybe it's not you I should be worrying about. I think I'm coming down with a cold." She stretched and stood up. "You can keep looking, if you want. I'm going to sleep. Sorry." She knew it wasn't her fault that she needed to rest, but it was force of habit to apologise at every opportunity. Amber slumped down on the bed, rubbing her eye with one hand, and swung her legs under the covers. "Good luck," she murmured.

"Magnemite," it replied softly, turning back to the screen. It held one magnet up and aimed it at the computer, and with a few specialised electrical pulses it gained control of the machine, flicking through pages of profiles and photographs.

Almost an hour passed. It had reached the end of the search, and still nothing. Something caught the Magnemite's eye, and it turned slightly to view it in the dim light. It looked like a photo frame.

The Pokémon hovered closer for a better look. The photograph showed a young girl and her family, standing together in front of an urban house. Beside her was a Blastoise, grinning happily down at the Growlithe puppy that it was cradling in its arms.

Amber must have lived such a protected life. And yet, to give up her life in Kanto and travel so far… Well, she made it to Sinnoh by herself. That in itself had to be an achievement, even if so many trainers seemed to be doing the same. It was no less of an accomplishment. She was to be admired.

The Magnemite glanced back at the screen, giving a blank look at the search bar. There was a moment of complete stillness.

Amber turned over, half asleep, one hand moving to rest gently on the cold edge of a magnet, and didn't flinch. She might have, if there had been some kind of static shock.

There was none.


	6. Epilogue

"Come on, Weaver! Try to keep up!"

The Heracross waved in recognition to his trainer, panting too heavily to be able to reply. She stopped where the path levelled out again, and he gratefully stopped for a breather as they waited for the others with the Magnemite.

A Ponyta was already there, stamping his hooves impatiently on the ground. He liked to race, and so help him if she took any more time over this…

Following next was a Yanma, and chasing behind it was Stat, apparently fully recovered from the ordeal with the Abomasnow. Amber had managed to get over her limp and was back to full health…

She sneezed violently, and Weaver flinched in surprise. "Sorry…" Well, maybe not entirely back to full health.

The trainer greeted the other two Pokémon as they caught up, and the Magnemite (who she had since nicknamed Uto) let off a few sparks as Kazza materialised behind it.

The Kadabra chuckled and turned to face Amber, who gave him a scolding look.

"Oh, don't spook Uto. I think we've all had enough of that for one day." Kazza's expression didn't change. He knew her too well to think that she was being serious. "Well," she continued, turning to the rest of the group, "are we all ready?"

A chorus of Pokémon cries echoed across the valley below in perfect synch. She grinned at their enthusiasm and turned to vault onto 02's back. The Ponyta whickered happily and did an excited little half-trot, half-dance on the ground before suddenly jerking forwards. His name had come from the branded mark on his flank, which had been put there when he was at his old farm. Now, though, you would hardly believe he was tame if it wasn't for the full set of tack he was wearing.

Stat raced to keep up with her trainer, enjoying the exercise, but skidded to a halt as she realised there was someone lagging behind. She shot a disapproving glance at Weaver as he struggled past, then dove underneath him and stood upright, giving him a free ride the rest of the way up the incline.

Some trainers had attempted to get Amber's attention, but she was having none of it. She really wanted to reach the top before the morning got really bright – otherwise the surprise would be spoilt. Less than ten minutes later, she tugged gently on the reins and brought 02 down several notches until finally they slowed to a halt.

The trainer dismounted, craning her neck to see over her shoulder. Sure enough, the Yanma had attached itself to the back of her shirt. She laughed and shook herself wildly until it flew off to alight on a rock, wings spread to catch the whitish early-morning sunlight.

The other Pokémon in her team arrived quickly enough, and she stood facing out over a white mist that obscured the land below – and anything to the horizon. Stat paced over to the edge of the cliff to join her mistress, and the others soon followed suit.

"Neen," she called. "Use Defog."

The Yanma took off from the rock and faced the cloud of condensation, wing movement becoming impossibly rapid. The mist was soon dispersed, and the sight that lay beyond it…

Everyone collectively stared in awe. Amber just smiled out at the landscape that was far below, and the sunrise that tinted everything a golden-yellow colour, bathing the land in its rays.

She would always love this sight. And she hoped her Pokémon would, too.

The trainer sat down, feet dangling over the edge. Kazza sat meditating by her right, and Stat lay down to her left, putting her furry head on her trainer's lap. Neen perched on 02's back, who stood nearby grazing on some sparse mountain grass. Weaver stood just behind Amber, peering over her left shoulder. He was too frightened to go too close to the cliff edge, so he was content just staying where he was.

And in pride of place, in the trainer's arms, nestled Uto the Magnemite, its metallic body catching the light in the morning sun.

This was her extended family. She welcomed all with open arms.

END. So, what did you think? Review! :D It's mah life blooood. 3 Oh and feel free to be firm but fair. I like critique and stuff. It helps me to become a better writer.


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